"Denver’s playoff victory against Pittsburgh in January
showcased the best, and the worst, of <a class="meta-per" title="More articles about Tim Tebow." href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/t/tim_tebow/index.html?inline=nyt-per">Tim
Tebow</a>.
<p itemprop="articleBody">He completed passes of 80, 58, 51, 40 and 31 yards in
upsetting the Steelers in overtime, 29-23. It was his greatest professional
performance, proof that he could beat a good opponent by throwing the ball, not
just by running with it. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody"><a title="N.F.L. Gamebook .pdf." href="http://www.nfl.com/liveupdate/gamecenter/55493/DEN_Gamebook.pdf">It was
also a game</a> in which Tebow completed just five other passes, completed less
than 50 percent of his attempts, converted just three third downs and
demonstrated that unconventional plays are typically the only plays he makes.
</p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">In evaluating Tebow, he has obvious assets like size
and athleticism, and a superabundance of intangibles: work ethic, leadership and
some elusive or illusory traits that make him “a winner.” He also has one
obvious, glaring, potentially career-derailing tangible: Tebow does not throw
the ball well. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">“His mechanics are very poor,” said Greg Cosell, the
executive producer of ESPN’s scouting-based “N.F.L. Matchup” show, “and that may
never change.” </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Cosell, who scrutinizes hundreds of hours of game film
every year, can pinpoint flaws in Tebow’s motion that lead to off-target passes.
</p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">“His arm speed is very slow,” Cosell said. “People
think he has a strong arm, but because his delivery is slow, it negates a lot of
that arm strength.” </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Arm-speed issues were evident during the Steelers
game. Tebow’s long passes came when he had time to **** his shoulders, wind up
and heave the ball downfield. When trying to throw quickly, his passes wobbled
or sailed away from receivers. Unlike Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, who can
effortlessly fling short passes, Tebow cannot deliver quick throws. During the
Steelers game, the CBS analyst Phil Simms pointed out several occasions when
Tebow scrambled instead of picking up easy yardage with a toss to an open
receiver. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Tebow has other mechanical flaws. He does not
consistently point his plant foot at his target, and the ball typically follows
the foot. He has quickened his release somewhat and corrected some major flaws
since leaving college. But his motion is still discouragingly similar to what
Nolan Nawrocki, the Pro Football Weekly draft analyst, <a title="Nawrocki’s analysis." href="http://www.profootballweekly.com/2010/03/15/top-10-qb-prospects">observed
in 2010</a> when Tebow came out of University of Florida: “Has a tendency to
overstride with a very long release and a baseball-like, windup throwing
motion.” </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Quarterbacks with unorthodox throwing mechanics have
thrived in the N.F.L., but only if they achieved an acceptable level of
accuracy. Tebow’s 46.5 percent completion rate last season was the lowest of any
starting quarterback since Cincinnati’s Akili Smith completed 44.2 percent of
his passes in 2000. Smith soon vanished from the league. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody"><a title="Tebow’s career statistics." href="http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/T/TeboTi00.htm">Tebow’s
completion percentage</a> was actually inflated by the scheme the Broncos (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/profootball/nationalfootballleague/denverbroncos/index.html?inline=nyt-org)
had designed for him. He threw a high percentage of wide receiver screens, which
require little more skill than handoffs. Tebow completed 30 of 40 passes thrown
to receivers at or behind the line of scrimmage. Those passes accounted for
nearly a quarter of his completions; his completion rate for passes that
actually traveled downfield was 41.6 percent. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Take away the screens, and Tebow is left with the
schoolyard plays, three or four conventional completions per game, and the same
number of incomplete passes Rodgers or Drew Brees typically throws while
generating more than twice the number of passing yards and points that Tebow
does. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">If he throws highlight-reel passes, as he did against
Pittsburgh, Tebow can lead a successful offense without developing as a passer.
Unfortunately, that is unlikely to happen. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">“Give him all the credit in the world for the Steelers
game, but that is not going to happen very often,” Cosell said. “People
conveniently forget that he was awful in four of his last five games.” </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">In those other four games, Tebow completed 39 percent
of his passes, averaged just 4.8 yards per attempt, and led the Broncos to an
average of 12.5 points per game. He also ran for just 39 yards per game. These
games, which came in the heat of a playoff race and in the postseason, against
top opponents like New England and woeful ones like Buffalo and Kansas City,
demonstrate the downside of counting on scramble-and-heave heroics to provide
nearly 100 percent of a team’s offense. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Tebow could still develop as a pure passer, but two
years of effort have yielded limited results, and as Cosell said, <a class="meta-org" title="Recent news and scores about the New York Jets." href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/sports/profootball/nationalfootballleague/newyorkjets/index.html?inline=nyt-org">the
Jets</a> might not be interested in fostering that development if they are
looking for a playmaker to provide an occasional spark while their defense does
the heavy lifting. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">“It comes down to this: Is someone going to teach him
how to play N.F.L. quarterback?” Cosell said. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">Tebow zealots may think such an education is
unnecessary: intermittent long passes, option plays and willpower are enough to
ensure that he is always on the winning end of 16-13 games. If that is true,
Tebow will be an anomaly in modern N.F.L. history: a quality quarterback who
cannot consistently complete passes. </p>
<p itemprop="articleBody">“No one has ever played quarterback in the N.F.L. at a
high level unconventionally.” Cosell said. “You have to stand in the pocket and
throw the football at some point.” </p>

greenca190

03-24-2012, 10:04 PM

Did someone really need to write this long of an article to get the point across?

GmenFan1980

03-24-2012, 10:07 PM

http://www.csnne.com/common/medialib/261/637502.jpg

But seriously, good luck Tebow. I still don't honestly see him becoming a starter in jet land